Hashtag applications on the rise #TimesAreChanging – Technology Law Update

Posted March 30th, 2016 in enforcement, intellectual property, internet, news, statistics, trade marks by sally

‘Research by Thomson CompuMark has highlighted the effect of the changing social media landscape on trademark applications.’

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Technology Law Update, 30th March 2016

Source: www.technology-law-blog.co.uk

Theresa May ‘wrongly deported 48,000 students’ after BBC Panorama exposes TOEIC scam – The Independent

‘Home Secretary Theresa May allegedly wrongly deported up to 50,000 international students after an English test cheating scam at one school was used to incriminate all who had sat the test.’

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The Independent, 29th March 2016

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Children in care homes ‘excessively criminalised’ – The Guardian

Posted March 30th, 2016 in care homes, children, criminal justice, news, police, statistics, young offenders by sally

‘Children living in care homes are “excessively criminalised” compared with other boys and girls, campaigners have said.’

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The Guardian, 30th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

EU referendum: Rules giving ‘free pass’ to terror suspects – BBC News

‘Being in the EU makes it harder for the UK to stop serious criminals and those with suspected terror links entering the country, a UK minister is to say.’

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BBC News, 30th March 2016

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Judges overturn practice of double conviction for aggravated offences – The Guardian

‘A long-established legal practice of imposing double convictions for racially or religiously aggravated offences has been overturned by a high court ruling that could influence national crime statistics.’

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The Guardian, 20th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Nuisance calls by ‘ambulance chasers’ soar despite attempts at crackdown – Daily Telegraph

‘One in five people receives an unsolicited, nuisance call every day in a practice fuelled by “ambulance-chasing lawyers,” a report has warned. The compensation culture, which is driven by claims management companies, has soared, despite government attempts to crack down on the practice.’

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Daily Telegraph, 21st March 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Do initiatives involving substantial increases in stop and search reduce crime? Assessing the impact of Operation BLUNT 2 – Home Office

‘This study assesses the impact on crime of the Metropolitan Police’s Operation BLUNT 2, which ran from May 2008 to April 2011.’

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Home Office, 17th March 2016

Source: www.gov.uk/home-office

Mass stop and search by police doesn’t reduce crime, says study – The Guardian

‘The use of large “surge” stop-and-search operations by the police has no discernible effect in reducing crime, according to newly released Home Office research. The study looks at the mass use of stop and search by London’s Metropolitan police to tackle knife crime in 2008/09, at a time when officers were carrying out one search every 20 seconds on average nationwide.’

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The Guardian, 17th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Deaths in detention a ‘national stain’, says report – BBC News

Posted March 18th, 2016 in death in custody, mental health, news, police, prisons, statistics by sally

‘More than 200 people have died of “non-natural” causes in detention in Britain since the start of 2014, says the Equality and Human Rights Commission.’

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BBC News, 18th March 2016

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Battlelines drawn as shaken baby syndrome controversy set to run – The Guardian

‘Shaken baby syndrome is back in the news. Monday’s BBC Panorama programme focused on this most contentious of subjects and was itself prompted by the General Medical Council’s prosecution of Dr Waney Squier, a consultant neuropathologist who used to give evidence against those charged with injuring their baby but now provides expert evidence in their defence. On Friday she was found guilty by the GMC of giving “expert opinion evidence outside your field of expertise” in several cases that came before the criminal or family courts, and could be struck off the medical register as a result.’

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The Guardian, 15th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Advertising Standards Authority moves to ban junk food adverts from online children’s programmes – The Independent

‘Advertisements for junk food on online children’s programmes are set to be banned under new guidelines, it has been reported.’

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The Independent, 13th March 2016

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Five-year-old boy investigated for rape in Manchester is one of 70 children under 10 to be accused of sex attacks – The Independent

‘Police have investigated a claim a five-year-old boy raped a 14-year-old girl in Manchester, it has been revealed.’

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The Independent, 14th February 2016

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Government seeks High Court ban on sixth-form strike plan – BBC News

Posted March 14th, 2016 in budgets, education, industrial action, news, statistics, teachers, trade unions by sally

‘Strike plans by sixth-form college teachers are “unlawful”, the government will argue in the High Court later.’

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BBC News, 14th March 2016

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Mending Rainbows: Domestic Violence in the LGBT Community/Communities – Family Law Week

Posted March 11th, 2016 in domestic violence, homosexuality, news, statistics, transgender persons by sally

‘It is widely acknowledged that domestic abuse/violence is a devastating crime that can destroy the lives of victims and their families. However, the prevalent “script” of domestic abuse is gendered and heteronormative, whereby the abuser is always male and the victim always female. It is generally disregarded that approximately 25% of the lesbian, gay, and bisexual community/communities experience domestic abuse, which is the same rate of domestic abuse perpetrated against heterosexual women. Likewise, in a recent study on domestic abuse in the transgendered community in Scotland, 80% of respondents stated that they had experienced emotionally, sexually, or physically abusive behaviour by a partner or ex-partner.’

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Family Law Week, 9th March 2016

Source: www.familylawweek.co.uk

Knife criminals spared jail despite ‘two strikes and you’re out’ law – Daily Telegraph

Posted March 11th, 2016 in cautions, news, offensive weapons, sentencing, statistics, suspended sentences by sally

‘Half of criminals caught carrying a knife have been spared an immediate jail term for a repeat offence despite a new “two strikes and you’re out” rule.’

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Daily Telegraph, 10th March 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Official data on forced marriages in UK may hide true scale of abuse – The Guardian

Posted March 10th, 2016 in forced marriages, news, statistics by sally

‘Figures showing that 1,220 possible cases of forced marriage in Britain were reported to the authorities last year may not reflect the full scale of abuse, the Home Office has said.’

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The Guardian, 8th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Recorded child sex abuse cases increase by more than 30% – The Guardian

Posted March 9th, 2016 in child abuse, internet, news, sexual offences, statistics by sally

‘Cases of recorded child sexual abuse increased by more than 30% last year, figures suggest. Police chiefs fear the rise is being driven by predators searching online for victims.’

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The Guardian, 9th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Nor any drop to drink – Nearly Legal

‘Jones v London Borough of Southwark [2016] EWHC 457 (Ch). Quite a lot of councils have agreements with water suppliers under which the council will collect water charges from their tenants, effectively as an addition to the rent. This case concerned a challenge to the nature and validity of Southwark’s agreement, at least before 2013.’

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Nearly Legal, 5th March 2016

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk/blog/

Online abuse: ‘existing laws too fragmented and don’t serve victims’ – The Guardian

‘The chief constable leading the fight against digital crime is calling for new legislation to tackle an “unimagined scale of online abuse” that he says is threatening to overwhelm the police service. Stephen Kavanagh, who heads Essex police, argues it is necessary to consolidate and simplify offences committed online to improve the chance of justice for tens of thousands of victims.’

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The Guardian, 4th March 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Car smoking ban farce as Met nets no prosecutions – Daily Telegraph

Posted March 7th, 2016 in children, enforcement, fines, health, news, police, prosecutions, smoking, statistics by sally

‘A new law aimed at protecting children from health risks of adults smoking in cars has turned into a farce after it emerged that Britain’s largest police force has not prosecuted a single driver.’

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Daily Telegraph, 7th March 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk